Science Fiction - Double Feature!

The transgressive nature of The Rocky Horror Picture Show made it a must see (and a must see again and again) for many folks in my generation, especially those who thought of themselves as "outsiders". It was naughty and it spoke of things which only some few insiders knew -- science fiction and horror names which didn't really penetrate the broader strata of society. At least they did not back then. Here's the delightful song written and performed by Richard O'Brien for the opening credits of the 1975 movie.

Here are the movies referenced during this lovely homage to the offbeat tastes which were the identifier for many folks many years ago. The broader society has absorbed and homogenized much of this today making it seem normal and almost mainstream, but once upon a decade these were delicious secret pleasures shared by a few, or at least it felt that way.

"Michael Rennie was ill The Day the Earth Stood Still, but he told us where we stand"

 

"And Flash Gordon was there in silver underwear"

 

"Claude Rains was The Invisible Man"

   

"Then something went wrong for Fay Wray and King Kong, they got caught in a celluloid jam"

 

"Then at a deadly pace It Came from Outer Space"

 

"Doctor X will build a creature"

 

"Anne Francis stars in Forbidden Planet"

 

"I knew Leo G. Carroll was over a barrel when Tarantula took to the hills"

 

"And I really got hot when I saw Janette Scott fight a Triffid that spits poison and kills"

 

"Dana Andrews said prunes gave him the runes, and passing them used lots of skills"

 

"But When Worlds Collide, said George Pal to his bride, I'm gonna give you some terrible thrills" 

The Rocky Horror Picture Show developed a fanbase which was the envy of many moviemakers. And many have tried to recreate the fervor in their followers, but it all seems derivative. Rocky Horror was the original. 

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